Cuba: An American History

Content Warning: This section of the guide includes discussion of death, graphic violence, racism, ableism, and antigay bias.



On Christmas Eve 1959, Fidel Castro traveled to the remote swampland of the Zapata Peninsula of Cuba to celebrate his first Christmas in office at the home of a local charcoal worker. He vowed to invest in developing the area. By the following year, a highway, utilities, and other amenities had been built there, and an enormous seaside resort was being built on Girón Beach. The resort was set to open on May 20, 1961.

On April 17, 1961, just off the coast where the resort was being built, a group of US-trained Cuban exiles arrived by sea with the intention of overthrowing the revolutionary government in Cuba. Due to incomplete intelligence, lack of US military air support, and other factors, the members of the anti-Castro Brigade 2506 were immediately spotted from the resort, where there was a party. By the time they reached the shore, the Cuban military was waiting for them. The invasion—called the Bay of Pigs invasion—was “a perfect failure” (356).

The US-backed coup strategy was planned under Eisenhower and championed by the CIA. The overall plan was to infiltrate the country with anti-Castro guerillas, who would then link up with the arriving soldiers and overthrow the government, all while making it seem like the US was not involved.